GST whingers - No Christian, West Australians are not!

31st October, 2017

Despite the anger, West Australians are still waiting for its share of the GST distribution to be fixed. Before that can occur however, West Australians firstly need to overcome the perception in the eastern states that West Australians are "GST whingers" over calls for GST reform.

This was the position recently confirmed by Minister for Social Services and fellow West Australian and Member for Pearce Christian Porter, who addressed a Chamber of Commerce and Industry event in Perth.

Personally, I would like to see what the position of our other states and territories would be if their own GST position was to fall to the levels that have affected Western Australia, as I do not think they would be so quiet if they were faced with similar GST issues as our great state.

Furthermore, our State Government finances, and the entire Western Australian economy is being seriously affected by the GST, and this is a position that all West Australians agree on, and likewise, is a position that all West Australians will no longer accept.

To all political parties and politicians, especially those representing our great state of Western Australia, it's time to fight for our state and your fellow West Australians, as we will no longer accept inaction, and when we hear that we are referred to as GST whingers, that just deepens the mistrust West Australians have in our political process, and towards those that are supposed to be representing our great state.

With news that the Productivity Commission itself now recognises the problems and has suggested changes to the GST distribution system, it's no surprise these changes have been met with an angry response from other states and territories. GST is not just an issue affecting Western Australia, but is also affecting business and consumer confidence, and likewise that also damages our national interest.

In my previous role as Head of Procurement for Verve Energy (the Government of Western Australia's Electricity Generator), I worked for Christian who was both the Attorney General and Treasurer of WA until he resigned to contest the federal election in June 2012. Christian knows only too well the effects of an unfair GST distribution formula which has ravaged our State's finances, especially as its resulted in our states share languishing at very low levels (circa $0.34 cents).

We were given certain directives (because of WA's financial position) and likewise we were unable to add to our states debt. Our state faces many challenges, and nor can we allow an unequitable, unjust and broken GST system to continue any longer, hence the need for urgent reform.

We no longer need a band aid approach to WA's GST share, but a solution, a solution that benefits not only Australia but the entire state of Western Australia as well. WA has had enough and its time to change, change to correct the unequitable, unjust and broken GST system that we currently have.

Philip Couper